Last Christmas: A Greek Winter Tale
by deewriter19
Summary: All your favorite characters are in Vail, CO for a Christmas story. Main story is about Casey and Cappie, who are forced to reunite after breaking up last Christmas. Will their feelings rekindle after being snow-bound together?
1. Prologue

**I was inspired to write this story after I listened to my favorite Christmas song by WHAM, called "Last Christmas." While watching the music video, I just had to write a Casey and Cappie Christmas story. It's been a busy few months so it feels good to be writing again. I hope you enjoy this story!**

**The Prologue of this story takes place 6 months after Casey and Cappie leave CRU. This chapter mainly focuses on the event that will lead to the rest of the story that will be told a year later. Please review. Thanks.  
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**Hi Fans - I know it's been a long time since I updated this story. I re-edited the prologue and first two chapters. I am currently working on Ch 3. Stay tuned!**

**~Dee**

**Last Christmas: A Greek Winter Tale**

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><p><em><strong>Prologue <strong>_

Casey Cartwright looked at her watch. They needed to get to the airport within the next hour so that they would make their flight back to Washington DC. _Where's Cappie_? She thought to herself. She couldn't believe that six months ago, Cappie and she had driven off together. She was so proud of him when he graduated and even prouder that he was willing to leave Ohio with her. It had taken six months to be away from Cypress-Rhodes University and not miss being a part of it. Now that they'd been back at CRU for a few days, it was great to see everyone again. She loved spending Christmas at Ashleigh's new apartment and witnessing the growing relationship between her best friend and her younger brother, Rusty; who was in his final year at CRU. She was also happy to see that Rebecca Logan and Evan Chambers had rekindled their relationship. Evan was in his second year of law school and Rebecca was also in her senior year like Rusty. Casey was also glad to see the Zeta Beta Zetas were once again the number one sorority.

She knew Cappie had missed CRU and when they arrived at their old campus a few days ago, it was like he never left. He immediately reconnected with his frat brothers at the Kappa Tau house and she knew if there was one place he was going to be at, it'd be the house. She left Ashleigh's apartment and made her way towards the KT house. As she neared the house, she saw some of the brothers setting up speakers outside the house and some carrying speakers to the backyard.

Peter Parkes, aka Pledge Spidey, saw Casey and waved. "We're setting up for our New Years Eve Party. It'll be insane!"

"I bet," Casey said with a laugh. "Is Cappie here by chance?"

"He's inside," Peter said with a nod in the direction of the front doors. "All of this was his idea."

Casey sighed. "I bet," she murmured under her breath. "Well, I'm sure you guys will have a blast tomorrow night."

"You know it," Peter exclaimed. "See ya!"

Casey walked inside the KT house and looked for her shaggy haired boyfriend. She found him in the living room holding on to a bunch of microphones. "Hey," she said quietly. "You were supposed to meet me at Ashleigh's, remember? We have to leave for the airport."

Cappie looked up and frowned. "I don't want to leave yet. Can't you go back without me?"

"Cap," Casey said with a sigh. "Remember our plans? We're supposed to get back to DC so that we can spend New Year's Eve together in our new city."

"Why can't we just spend New Year's here?" Cappie asked.

"Look, Cap, we don't have time for this. Can we get going?"

"I said I'm not going."

"Come on, Cap, you don't mean that. I know you've had your fun being back at CRU, but we need to get back to our life in DC."

Cappie placed the microphones down on the floor and took a step towards Casey. "You mean, your life?"

Casey shook her head and gave Cappie a confused look. "What are you talking about?"

"Case, you love DC. You fit in there. You've found something you love to do. But me? I've been miserable." Cappie gave her a sad look.

"Seriously, what's this about?" Casey asked, placing her hand on her hips and giving him a look.

"Casey, I don't want to go back to DC ever. I'm staying at CRU."

"Cap, why is this the first time I'm hearing about this? I thought you liked DC."

"I haven't been happy for quite a while, if I'm being honest." Cappie looked down at his hands then back up at Casey's face. It pained him to see the confusion in her beautiful hazel eyes. "You made me leave CRU. I should've left when I was good and ready."

"I didn't make you do anything." Casey said.

"Because of you, I turned in my graduation papers; I graduated."

"And that's a bad thing?" Casey asked.

Cappie shook his head. "You don't get it. I didn't want to leave this place. I wasn't ready. CRU has been my home for the last five years."

"You don't think I know that. It's been a home for me, too. But we grew up, Cappie. We needed to move on so that we could start a new life together. We needed to get away from all of this." Casey reached out and placed her hand on his arms.

"No, you wanted to get away. I didn't want to lose you, so I had no choice but to follow you."

"Cappie," Casey said, feeling tears brim her eyes. "Look, let's just get back to DC and talk this over before we decide anything."

Cappie shrugged Casey's hands off of him. "I already told you that I'm staying here, Case. I'm not leaving." He walked over to the dining table and flashed a piece of paper in her face. "It's official. I'm staying at CRU so that I can be the new KT house dad."

"What?" Casey asked, grabbing the piece of paper from him. "Please tell me this is a joke?"

"It's no joke. I had lunch with Dean Bowman a couple of days ago to present this idea to him and surprisingly, he loved it. Despite our differences, he thinks that I can be a good influence to the new pledges and keep these guys in line. Plus, Pan-Hellenic is now making it official for all the fraternities to have a house dad since the sororities complained about why they all had house moms when the frats didn't. Every fraternity needs to have a house dad or they can't be active."

"And you brought it upon yourself to volunteer for the position without talking to me about it?"

"Come on, Case, we all know how you'd react. Besides, it was your brother's idea?" Cappie said with a shrug.

"Rusty put you up to this?" Casey asked with shock. "I'm going to have to hurt him."

"Case, I want this. I'm not leaving this place. Come on, we both could stay here. You've been re-thinking law school, haven't you? Why don't you just re-apply here and then we can both stay here together."

"Cappie, I left this place for a reason. I need to function and try and lead a life outside of CRU. I have to be away from the sorority. I just do. If I stayed here, I'll just be going backwards and I can't do that." She looked at her watch. "Look, we have to get to the airport. Let's just finish talking about this later."

Cappie crossed his arms over his chest. "Casey," he said quietly. "I'm staying right where I am. Do you want me to say what I really want to say? Will that make you understand?"

Casey looked at his face and sighed. "What could you possibly say to me that would make me understand? I love you Cappie. You're everything to me. When you told me you'd leave this place with me, I couldn't believe it. I fell in love with you even more."

Cappie's heart ached at hearing those words. He had to tell her the truth. "Look, I love you, too, but I haven't been happy for the last three months. I've been so miserable that I started to despise you and everything you do. I blame you, Case, for making me change. You just could never accept me for me. Last year, I told you that I would change myself to make me worthy of you."

"Cap," Casey said quietly. "Why are you saying these things to me?"

"I don't want to lie anymore. I'm not happy. Since being back at CRU, it's made me realize that I don't fit in with your world. I need to be here. I'm needed here."

Casey placed her hand on Cappie's arm and looked up at him. "But I need you," she told him quietly.

Cappie closed his eyes and sighed. "It's over," he told her.

"Come on, Cap, you don't mean that." Casey pleaded.

Cappie looked down at Casey. "I do," he sighed. "I can't be unhappy anymore."

"Cappie, please," Casey barely said above a whisper as the tears she was trying to hold back forced through. "I don't want us to be over."

"It's too late," Cappie said. "You know what I want. I want to stay here at CRU. You want to go back to DC. We both know that a long distance relationship will never work. You said so yourself, remember?"

Casey's heart stung at the bitter words. "But that was two years ago. We're so much stronger now. I just don't want to fight about this right now. So, if you want to stay here, I'll try to understand; but I have to leave for DC. Our fight, I mean, my flight takes off in a little over an hour. We'll talk some more once I'm back in DC. Okay?"

Cappie shook his head. "Casey," he started. "I have to be honest with you. I don't want a long distance relationship. So it's either, you move here or we're through."

Casey looked shocked. "Are you giving me an ultimatum?"

Cappie nodded. "Now you know what I felt like all the times you put me in this situation."

Casey gave a small laugh. "Wow," she said. "I can't believe you. You're unbelievable." She shook her head. "I didn't push you to graduate. I didn't expect you to just up and leave everything for me. You have to want it for yourself, and let's be honest, deep down you do. Cappie, I've never been more proud of you when you told me you were graduating. Don't tell me you despise me because you accomplished something that so many people want. You're just scared of the unknown."

"Casey, it's over," Cappie said quietly. "We just don't work out in the real world."

"Oh, now who's the one that has no faith in us?" Casey said with anger. Then she softened her voice, "If you want to stay here, I get it. I understand. Let's just try and make this work. I still want to be with you."

Cappie sighed and placed a hand on Casey's arm. "It's over," he enunciated. "I need to be on my own. I can't go back to trying to make this work."

"You expect me to understand any of this? I wasn't even aware that you were unhappy in this relationship until 10 minutes ago. You just expect me to just walk away and forget about us?"

Cappie tried not to look at her because he knew that the minute he did, he'd tell her he was being ridiculous and that he wanted to make their relationship work. So he looked away instead. He had to tell her the truth. She needed to know, even if it meant she'd hate him forever. "You need to know something," he started.

"What?" Casey asked softly.

"I messed up." Cappie started. "Look, a few nights ago, I did something I'm not proud of."

Casey stood frozen and looked at him. "What did you do?" She was afraid of his answer.

"It was stupid, really. We had just gotten into an argument because I didn't want to go see that play with you, Ashleigh, Rusty, Rebecca, and Evan. You called me a selfish jerk."

"Yeah, go on," Casey urged.

"I was here at the KT house when a bunch of people came over. I'd been drinking a lot and I was standing underneath the mistletoe and one of the girls came over and she kissed me."

"I see," Casey said with a nod. "Look Cap, I don't care. It was just a kiss. I can forgive you. Let's just move on."

"It wasn't just a kiss," Cappie told her.

"What?" Casey asked, stunned.

"I slept with her, okay," Cappie told her. "I told you I was un –"

Before Casey could stop herself, she slapped Cappie. "How dare you?" She cried. "How dare you!" She stated more than asked this time. "You're a freaking coward, Cap. At the first sign of trouble, instead of talking to me, you just go and ruin our relationship." Casey was crying now.

Cappie put a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry, Case."

Casey shrugged his hand off of her and glared at him. "Whatever, I have a plane to catch." She walked away from him and turned around and gave him one last look. Her face streaked with tears. "I will never forgive you, Cap."

Cappie watched as she walked away; his heart was breaking as well. He hadn't wanted to hurt her, but she deserved to know the truth. He hadn't been happy for a long time now and it was because he missed CRU so much. He couldn't function outside of it. He missed the fraternity and he missed when his life was so much simpler. Living in DC sucked. He hated their one bedroom apartment and his job. For Casey, she was the life of the party. She found a good job working for a non-profit organization that went around to the local high schools, colleges, and universities educating students on the power to vote. Casey was good at whatever she did. She was good with people and they liked her. She'd found her niche in DC.

As for him, he was bored at his job. He hated getting up at 7:00 am every day just so he could catch the train to his job selling insurance. He shuddered at the thought. Not a lot of people wanted to hire a Philosophy major, but they needed to make rent and afford a comfortable life style, so when the insurance agency approached him with a job offer, he took it.

He breathed a sigh of relief. No more of that crap job, he thought to himself. He would be the new house dad for the KT house and it would be awesome. As he silently processed everything that had just happened, he could feel his heart breaking. He closed his eyes. One of the hardest things he'd ever had to do was break Casey Cartwright's heart again. "I'm sorry , Case," he said under his breath.


	2. Chapter 1

**Last Christmas: A Greek Winter Tale**

**Chapter One**

"Okay," Casey Cartwright said nervously. "What's going on?" She was looking into the faces of her two best friends, Ashleigh Cartwright and Rebecca Logan. They were sitting around the granite island in the Logan's expansive kitchen. The three friends had reunited the night before when they arrived at the Logan's winter home in Vail, Colorado – except this place was more than just a home, it was a 10-bedroom villa surrounded on three sides by pine and fir trees. It was the picture of a winter wonderland.

Ashleigh and Rebecca looked at each other. The two friends silently played a game of "you-tell-her" until Ashleigh sighed and decided to just say it. "So, you know that Cappie is going to be here this week, right?"

Casey nodded. "Yes, we already discussed this a month ago." Casey took a sip of her coffee and shrugged. "Are you guys certain that he won't mind that I'm here?"

"Casey," Rebecca said, "trust me, it's all good. Besides, why should you care what he thinks? You're my guest."

Casey gave her friend a small smile. "You're right," she nodded. "I shouldn't care what Cappie thinks. It's just that I haven't seen him since we broke up."

"Case," Ashleigh said teasingly, "We love you, but if we spend this whole vacation talking about your break up, we will have to hurt you."

"Okay, okay," Casey said with a wave of her hand. "Point taken; it's just that it's been over a year since we talked or saw each other. This past year has been the hardest. When we came back to CRU for Christmas last year, I wasn't expecting to leave without him."

Ashleigh put an arm around her best friend. "I know. That sucked. We were all shocked as well."

Casey sighed. "Thanks for listening, but I promise to be on my best behavior when I see Cappie."

"Well, the thing is," Rebecca said, unable to look at Casey, "well, Cappie isn't coming here alone."

"Oh," Casey said quietly. "So, he's bringing a date?"

Ashleigh cleared her throat and looked uncomfortable. "Not exactly. She's his girlfriend."

"Oh," Casey repeated. "I mean, it's been a year, Cappie was bound to start dating again." As Casey said the words, she couldn't help feeling the tears sting her eyes.

"Um," Rebecca started, "they've been together for a while."

"Well, ever since you left last year, actually." Ashleigh stated sheepishly.

Casey looked from Ashleigh's face to Rebecca's and it dawned on her what they were saying. "Wait a minute," Casey said with shock, "do you mean to tell me that his girlfriend is the girl that he cheated on me with?"

Ashleigh and Rebecca both nodded. "Yes," the two friends replied meekly.

"How could you keep this from me?" Casey asked, feeling betrayed.

"It wasn't that we were hiding it from you," Ashleigh replied. "We were protecting you."

"We're sorry, Case," Rebecca said quietly. "We all thought it was better if you didn't know."

Casey shrugged and gave her friends a small smile. "I guess I can't be mad at you guys, you're only looking out for me. But seriously, how the hell am I supposed to act when I see him? Isn't Evan on his way back from the airport with him?"

Rebecca nodded. "That's why we needed to tell you. Cappie, Lana, and Rusty's flight got in about 45 minutes ago. I'm pretty sure they'll be here soon."

"Wait, Lana?" Casey asked. "Isn't she that townie that Cappie dated during junior year?"

"That's her," Ashleigh responded.

"Wow," Casey said. "Well, um, so pretty much everyone that's coming here is in a relationship. I'm like the 11th wheel. Okay, now, I'm starting to freak out."

"Case," Ashleigh grabbed a hold of her friend's hand, "it'll be okay. Relax. Take a few breaths. There you go."

"We're really sorry, Case," Rebecca added. "We didn't mean to make it weirder for you."

Casey waved a hand at them. "Seriously, I'll be okay. We were both bound to move on at some point. I just need a few minutes to process all this information. I'm going to go my room for a bit. Just let me know when they get here." Casey gave her friends a small smile and left so that she could escape to her room before she started crying.

"Okay," Ashleigh said. "See ya." She gave Rebecca a small smile and watched as her best friend walked up the stairs and to the right. Ashleigh felt so bad for Casey. She knew her friend was miserable without Cappie and she admired how brave Casey was trying to be. She shook her head at the thought of him. She was so certain when Casey and Cappie drove off together that fateful day in June that they would live happily ever after. Whenever she talked to Casey, it seemed like things were going great with them. They had found a cute one-bedroom apartment in Washington DC while they both tried to figure out what they wanted to do. Casey had found a great job working with a non-profit organization and was visiting a lot of schools to discuss the power of voting and encouraging students to register as a voter.

A year ago, Casey and Cappie came back to CRU during Christmas for a visit. It was Ashleigh's first Christmas with Rusty Cartwright, her boyfriend of a year and a half; he also happened to be Casey's younger brother. Rusty was President of the Kappa Tau fraternity and the KTs were hosting a big Christmas mixer. Once Cappie was reunited with his former brothers and their new pledges, he realized he was miserable in the "real" world and wanted to stay at CRU. Within their 10-day stay at CRU, Cappie found a way to convince Dean Bowman that the KTs needed him as their house dad, due to the new Pan-Hellenic regulations. And just like that, Cappie made a place for himself at CRU again and he wasn't going to leave.

Ashleigh had seen a lot of Cappie over the past year of course, because of Rusty. She had no idea how Casey had avoided not seeing Cappie for a year since they were all at CRU for Rusty and Rebecca's graduation in June. She hadn't had the heart to tell Casey that Cappie was bringing his new girlfriend to Vail. Unfortunately, she had learned that the girl that kissed Cappie under the mistletoe was a townie named Lana, who Cappie had dated previously. Ever since their break up, Lana had been a fixture at the KT house, always on the arms of Cappie.

"At least now she knows," Rebecca muttered. "I just hope they can be cordial with each other. Cappie refused to come if he couldn't bring Lana and Evan really wanted his best friend here. So, I had to give in."

"Casey's tough," Ashleigh said. "She'll be okay." _I hope_, Ashleigh couldn't help but think to herself.

"I guess we'll have to be nice to what's-her-face, too," Rebecca said with a sigh. "I miss being bitchy to girls I don't like." She raised an eyebrow at Ashleigh and they both started laughing. They started clearing the granite counter of their plates and cups when they heard two beeps from the approaching SUV pulling into the driveway.

"Rusty's here!" Ashleigh said excitedly. She ran to the bottom of the stairs, "Case, our first guests are here. Come on!"Ashleigh watched as Casey made her way down the stairs. "Wow, that green looks amazing on you." Casey had changed into a pair of dark jeans and an emerald green sweater that looked great against her golden skin and blonde hair. She noticed that the sweater also hugged Casey's curves to a tee. She knew her friend wanted to look good for Cappie. He would have to be blind not to notice, Ashleigh thought with a smile.

Casey shrugged. "This is an old sweater," she said nonchalantly.

Rebecca wolf-whistled at her friend. "Well, it looks good on you. Trying to impress someone?"

"There's no one to impress," Casey said quickly. "I just don't want to look like a slob seeing him for the first time since our break up."

"Come on," Ashleigh linked her arms through her friends, "let's go meet and greet."

The three friends laughed as they made their way to the front door. They watched as Evan pulled the SUV in front of them. As soon as the car was parked, Rusty jumped out of the passenger seat and threw his arms around Ashleigh.

"Hey baby," Rusty whispered into Asheigh's ear. "I missed you last night." He hugged his girlfriend tight and then he kissed her.

Ashleigh giggled as they broke apart from their embrace. "Well, we can catch up tonight," she said teasingly.

"Hi," Rusty heard as someone tapped him on the shoulder. "Remember me? Your big sister?"

Rusty let go of Ashleigh and gave his big sister a big hug. "Case! How have you been? How's DC?"

"Things are great. DC couldn't be better. I got a new apartment in the Georgetown area and it's gorgeous. You and Ash need to come by for a visit this spring." Casey replied.

"Perhaps during spring break?" Rusty told her. "Let me get my bags and we can catch up inside."

"Sure," Casey said, wishing her brother was still next to her. Now that the moment was here, she wasn't sure she could really face Cappie. Or Lana. "Do you need help, Rusty?"

By this time, Rusty and Ashleigh were hand-in-hand and were walking back into the villa. She looked to Rebecca and her friend gave her a small smile. "It'll be okay," Rebecca whispered.

Casey watched as Cappie got out of the car. He smiled at Rebecca, but as his eyes laid on her, Casey felt frozen in place. She couldn't move or react. Cappie nodded in her direction. "Hey," he said quietly.

"Hi," Casey said back. It was kind of chilly outside but she couldn't help but feel warm all over as his blue eyes lingered on her. He still looked the same. He still had the long scruffy haired look that she loved so much about him.

Cappie broke their stare as he reached his hand inside to help Lana out. "Wow, this place is great!" Lana said as she looked around. She walked towards them, her long dark hair flowing behind her. "Thanks for having me."

Rebecca gave her a smile. "It's my pleasure, Lana," she said a little too sweetly.

Cappie smiled at them. "So, Casey, this is Lana." He turned to Lana, "And Lana, this is Casey and you already know Rebecca."

Lana smiled at them. "Charmed." She then turned to Casey, "I think we met a couple of years ago . Didn't we have a double date with you and what was his name? He had dark hair, kind of a mix between geeky and hunky," she looked to Cappie, "don't you remember? Was his name Mac?"

"It was Max," Casey and Cappie both said at the same time. They both looked at each other and quickly looked away. Casey could feel her cheeks blushing.

"Oh right," Lana said with a laugh. "That was a fun night."

"Sure was," Casey replied before she realized what she said. "Anyway, I'm going to go and talk to my brother. It was nice to meet you."

"You, too, Carrie." Lana replied.

"It's Casey." Once again, Casey and Cappie both said it at the same time. They briefly locked eyes before Casey turned away. "Excuse me," Casey left them and walked back towards the house. She heard Rusty and Ashleigh in the kitchen and went there. "Wow, I forgot how brash she can be. She just puts it all out there."

"What are you talking about?" Ashleigh asked.

"Lana just brought up our double date and Max. And then she called me Carrie." Casey said. "Really?"

"It'll be okay," Ashleigh told her. "You don't even have to hang out with her. Katherine and Beaver, Laura and Dale, Calvin and Heath are all getting in later today. Before you know it, this place will be filled with our other friends and you can avoid her."

"I hope so," Casey said.

Rusty came over and put his arm around his sister. "Sorry we kind of surprised you with all of this. We didn't know how to tell you."

"I get it. But next time, just tell me. And not 20 minutes before. Anyway, I think I'm going to go read in my room for a while. What time do the others get here?"

Ashleigh looked at her watch. "Let's see, it's about two now. Katherine, Beaver, Laura, and Dale get in around four, and Calvin and Heath are getting in around seven. I think we're all going out to dinner tonight once we pick up Calvin and Heath. So be ready to go by 6:30."

"Where are we going to dinner?" Casey asked.

"Some casual bar. Nothing fancy."

"Sounds good." Casey left her brother and friend and went to her room. She decided a nap was a much better idea. She was officially a mess, she had to admit. How was she going to pretend that everything was okay? She wasn't sure if she could handle being in the same room with Cappie and Lana because it had been hard when they were standing outside. The more she thought about the situations, she couldn't help but feel a bit mad towards her friends and Rusty. How could they have kept this information from her? Casey grabbed a Kleenex and wiped at her eyes. She willed herself not to cry. Not right now. She was blowing her nose when she heard a soft knock at her door. _It's probably Ashleigh checking on me, _she thought. Casey went to the door and pulled it open as she said "Ash, really, I'm fine."

But to her surprise, it wasn't Ashleigh at the door; instead it was Cappie. "Hey," he said with a sheepish smile. "Can we talk?"

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><p><strong>AN:** **I really enjoyed writing this chapter because one of my favorite things on _Greek_ was watching the scenes where Casey and Cappie look at each other and you can feel the yearning, angst, and love between those looks. I hope you felt it, too. :) I will try to update much quicker for the next few weeks. Enjoy!**

**~Dee**


	3. Chapter 2

**Last Christmas: A Greek Winter Tale**

**Chapter Two**

Casey stared at Cappie in shock. She quickly looked away, hoping that he hadn't seen the sadness in her eyes. She silently counted to three and crossed her arms over her chest and looked at Cappie. "Sure," she said quietly.

"May I come in?" Cappie asked.

"Sure," Casey turned and walked over to the bed and took a seat. She quickly wiped at her face to rid of the evidence that she'd been crying. She gestured to the chair at the desk. "Have a seat." She watched as Cappie sat down.

Cappie turned to her and he couldn't help but feel a little something in his heart. He could tell that she'd been crying and he felt bad because he knew he was the cause of it. Evan had told him earlier that Casey didn't know he would be bringing Lana with him to Vail. Cappie felt like he owed Casey an explanation. "How are you doing?" He asked casually.

Casey looked at him for a few seconds before responding. "I'm okay," she finally said. "I'm ready for some skiing and snowboarding. The last few months at work have been really busy, so it's nice to have a break." She gave a small cough. "How are things with you?"

Cappie slowly nodded. "Overall, things are good. I really love being a house dad," he said with a small laugh. "Things at the KT house are so different than before."

"Oh," Casey said, "what do you mean? Is there less partying?"

Cappie laughed. "Oh, we're still partying hard, but we're also taking philanthropy and our grades seriously. We're ranked number two in philanthropy hours and number three for having the highest cumulative GPA."

Casey smiled. "Well, I'm impressed. That's great to hear."

"It's not all me," Cappie replied. "Your brother had a lot to do with it. I thought I was a good President," Cappie smiled at her, "but Rusty was awesome. He really turned the frat around. Our guys are even considered 'dateable' to your ZBZs."

"I thought I would never hear that," Casey teased. They were both relaxed and laughing and for a second Casey forgot that they were exes, not friends. She sighed and gave Cappie a look. "So, you said you wanted to talk. What about?"

Cappie looked into her face and saw the sadness peeking through. He needed to get on with it. "I'm sorry that you didn't know about Lana."

Casey waved her hands at him. "What do you have to be sorry about? It's not like we've talked in a year. You're free to do whatever you want."

"Case," Cappie said, "I need to explain about Lana."

"What's to explain?" Casey challenged. "I get it. You don't need to sugarcoat anything. She's the one you cheated on me with. I already know." She looked down at her hands.

"That's what I wanted to explain," Cappie said quietly. "Will you look at me?"

Casey stubbornly looked up. "Explain?" She asked in confusion. "Explain what?" She asked with emphasis as she looked into his blue eyes. "Explain how hurt I was that you broke up with me out of the blue? Explain how you threw away our relationship for a night of drunken sex? Or explain how easy it was for you to move on?" By this time, Casey knew her voice was rising and she didn't care. It felt good to let all her feelings from the past year out.

"Case," Cappie said. She felt weak in the knees as she heard the way he said her name. He always had that effect on her. "I didn't throw away our relationship on a night of drunken sex. I lied to you about that."

Casey stared at Cappie in shock. "What?"

Cappie looked away and sighed. "I made that part up. Yes, Lana kissed me, but I never slept with her. I just said it so that," Cappie swallowed, "it would make hating me easier."

Casey felt tears stinging her eyes. "I couldn't hate you even if I tried," she said softly. "Why would you let me believe that? Why?"

"I'm sorry, Casey," Cappie told her. "It was just easier to say that." Cappie looked away and sheepishly muttered, "Then you'd let me go."

Casey shook her head. "Don't you get it, Cap, I loved you. We should've just talked about it and made it work. I spent the last year in a daze questioning everything about our relationship and trying to understand where things went wrong." She stared at him. "But, the truth is that you wanted to stay at CRU and instead of talking about it, you created this scenario to cover it up. God, Cappie, you made me think the worst of you." She sighed. "I just, I just," she shook her head, "what do you want from me?"

Cappie sighed. "Look, I'd like it if we could try to be friends again. I know it was stupid of me to lie about sleeping with Lana to get you to break up with me, but you didn't try to understand where I was coming from. Casey, I was miserable in DC. I just wanted my life back at CRU."

"Well, clearly, life at CRU has treated you well. I'm happy for you." Casey said with sarcastically. "But, I'm not sure if we can be friends. I just don't know what to say about all of this. I mean, I can't even tell you what I'm madder about – the fact that you lied about sleeping with someone or the fact that you wanted a life at CRU more than you wanted a life with me." As she said the last part, Casey realized it hurt to say that out loud.

"Case," Cappie interjected. "I always wanted a life with you." He shrugged. "I just didn't want a life in DC. You were amazing in DC. You fit in; you built an amazing life there. Me, I was lost. I couldn't handle life without CRU."

Casey shook her head. "Why didn't you just say something?"

"I don't know; I was scared that you'd laugh at me or think I was being childish, refusing to grow up." Cappie replied.

Casey reached a hand out and put it on his. "Honestly? You're right; I probably would've said something along those lines." She looked at him. "But at least we would've known there was a problem. Cap, when you told me you didn't want to go back to DC. I didn't expect that. Then you went off on how much you hated DC. You should've just told me earlier."

"I know," Cappie said. "I wish I could go back and change things, but it's been a year. A lot has happened."

"I know," Casey said with a nod.

"Well, there is one other thing."

"What?"

"Could you convince the other girls to be nice to Lana?" Cappie asked sheepishly. "It's my fault you guys all have this bad opinion of her, but she's actually pretty great."

Casey looked down and realized her hand was still on his. She moved it away. "I guess," she said quietly. Then she looked at him. "How serious are you guys?"

Cappie cleared his throat. "Despite what you've heard, we've actually only started dating five months ago." He gave her an awkward grin. "Trust me; I was also mourning our relationship. You know, I _cleaned_ for months on end."

Casey nodded, understanding the inclination. Cappie had had a penchant for cleaning whenever they were broken up. It gave her some comfort that he hadn't just jumped into a new relationship. "Well, I'll make sure to let the other girls know to be nice."

Cappie gave her a big grin. "Thanks Case. I do appreciate it."

"Sure," she said quietly. "But as for us being friends again, it's going to take time. And please don't feel bad if I try and avoid you or Lana during this trip. I just don't know if I'm really all okay with this. You understand, right?"

Cappie couldn't help but feel pain in his heart at hearing her words. "I hear you," he replied nonchalantly. He cleared his throat and stood up. "Well, I better go find my room. I just really wanted to talk to you before everyone else got here."

Casey looked at Cappie. She could see his blue eyes sadden when she told him she was planning to avoid him. She had to though. She couldn't sit there and pretend things were going to be okay, even if he admitted the truth about not cheating on her. "Thanks for telling me the truth though," she said as she walked Cappie to the door. "I hope you'll find everything you want," Casey began saying, "with, uh, with Lana." She finally managed to get out.

Cappie turned to face her. He reached for her hand. "It's okay, Case," he whispered. "You don't have to say that." He looked down at her hand in his. Then he raised his eyes to her face and stared down into her beautiful hazel eyes. "It's really good to see you, Case. You don't know how hard it was not to see or talk to you for a year. I don't think we've ever gone that long before."

Casey couldn't hold back the tears. "It's good to see you, too," she said with a small smile. She wasn't sure if it was her imagination or not, but she saw Cappie's face coming closer to hers. His hand was still on hers and she could feel the heat searing between them.

"Oh, there you are!" A voice exclaimed from Casey's doorway. Casey and Cappie broke apart and stared at Lana. She was smiling at them and wearing a black bikini, a red sarong tied around her toned waist. "Baby, it's hot tub time."

Cappie cleared his throat. "Er, go on ahead. I'll meet you there in a few minutes."

Lana continued smiling. "I think I'll wait," she said with a hint of annoyance in her voice.

"Go ahead," Casey said. "I have some reading to do anyway. Have fun." She turned her back on them and grabbed her laptop.

Cappie stared at Casey's back and closed his eyes. _Idiot_, he thought to himself. He wasn't sure if he was more annoyed that he had almost kissed Casey or annoyed that Lana had interrupted them. Whatever moment he had with Casey was clearly gone now. "See ya, Case." He turned to face Lana. She was giving him a disapproving look. Cappie shrugged and gestured for her to go. Lana grabbed his hand as she led him towards the pool area.

Casey closed her bedroom door and sighed. She couldn't believe what had just happened. She couldn't believe that they had almost kissed. She would have to be on her best behavior from now on. As much as it pained her to see Cappie with Lana, it wouldn't be right. She understood how much it hurt to get cheated on and she didn't want to be the cause of hurting someone else. She was relieved to hear that Cappie hadn't cheated on her, but she was still hurt by what he said. Why hadn't he just been honest with her? If he had, she was certain they would still be together. Or was Cappie right? Would she have accused Cappie of being immature? Would she have been supportive? Casey sighed. It would not do her any good to torture herself with these thoughts. "I have to let him go," she mused out loud. Even as she said it, Casey knew it would be a hard thing to do.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Of course I couldn't have Cappie cheat on Casey. He'd never do that :) Thanks for reading!**

**~Dee**


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